"Don’t throw the O if you ain’t tryna go": Fans react as nation's No. 1 LB Tyler Atkinson hypes Oregon after hosting Ducks staff

Five-star linebacker Tyler Atkinson is one of the best uncommitted players in the 2026 class. The top Oregon target hosted Ducks defensive coordinator Tosh Lupoi, inside linebackers coach Brian Michalowski and defensive line coach Tony Tuitoi on Tuesday.

"Incredible vibes #AtkNup with the #Ducks🔥'I learned a lot more about Oregon last night!'" Atkinson tweeted.

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Atkinson's post quickly drew a flood of enthusiastic responses from Oregon fans.

"Don’t throw the O if you ain’t tryna go bro!! We need ya man no lie," one wrote.

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"Looks like they taught you how to show off how many Natty’s they have," a fan wrote.

"Go ducks!!!!!" one added.

Atkinson is the No. 1 linebacker in the 2026 class and the No. 7 recruit in the nation, according to the On3 Industry Rankings. He was honored as MaxPreps National Junior of the Year in 2024 after leading Grayson High School to a Georgia 6A state title, and he also participated in the 2025 Navy All-American Bowl.

Oregon supporters didn’t leave any stone unturned to campaign hard to win Atkinson over.

"Please please please! I can’t wait to see what happens when Dan and Tosh get an elite LB like you in the middle of that defense! Need you as the captain of our gang green!" one wrote.

"You’re a duck," a netizen wrote.

"You really could be the next goat at Oregon!! Talk to Bryce! They turned a walk on in to a combine invite/draft lock 🔒 think about what they could do for you!" a fan added.

Atkinson is lauded for being versatile and knowing how to get stops. He recorded 166 tackles (32 for loss) with 46 quarterback hurries, 13 sacks, one interception and one forced fumble in his junior season in 2024.

Tyler Atkinson sets official visit to Clemson

Tyler Atkinson was on the Clemson campus for the Elite Retreat in March. On Tuesday, he locked in an official visit to the Tigers for May 30-June 1, which will be his first official visit of the summer.

“Clemson was one of my top 10 schools before they even offered me,” Atkinson told On3's Hayes Fawcett.

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As a Georgia native, Tyler Atkinson is predicted to favor the in-state Georgia Bulldogs. According to On3, Georgia has a 30.9% chance of landing his commitment, with Clemson trailing at 12.6%.

Clemson doesn’t have a linebacker commit in the 2026 class. The Tigers' cycle ranks No. 10 in the nation with 15 committed players.

About the author

Maliha is a High School Sports news and listicles writer at Sportskeeda. A post graduate in Management Information Systems, it was her love for writing and sports which led her down the path of sports content creation. An experienced NBA and NFL writer, she covered the two sports extensively at SportsZion and SportsKnot before joining SportsKeeda.

Maliha is a huge Baltimore Ravens fan and is in awe of quarterback Lamar Jackson's dual-threat abilities. She also admires Tom Brady and her all-time favorite coach is 3-time Super Bowl champion Andy Reid. She is a big advocate of high school sports and believes that elite athletes reach a top level owing to the discipline, hard work, team dynamics, resilience, adaptability and self-confidence learnt by playing sports in high schools. Aaron Rodgers leading the Green Bay Packers to victory on his debut against the Minnesota Vikings is one of her fondest NFL memories.

Maliha places a high emphasis on accuracy in her content. She does thorough research, always double checks facts, and only uses information from most relevant and credible sources for her articles. When not writing, she likes to read history and biographical books.

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Edited by R. Elahi